


the blood you bleed (is just the blood you owe)

by lilacpeonies (tangledintime)



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dystopia, Angst with a Happy Ending, Animal Death, Class Issues, Detective Suh Youngho | Johnny, M/M, More tags to be added, Murder Mystery, Only in the first chapter, Possible smut, lapslock, pls don't smoke, taeyong smokes a lot, taeyong was in the wrong place and the wrong time dude, taeyong: eat the rich
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-28
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:02:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23365873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tangledintime/pseuds/lilacpeonies
Summary: taeyong lives in a city inhabitants call the cage, a city where those deemed not suitable to continue humanity are left to die. no one gets in, no one gets out. johnny’s a detective apart of the elite, humans who are deemed suitable to continue life. when someone from the elite is supposedly murdered in the cage, taeyong has only one shot of escaping by teaming up with johnny suh.
Relationships: Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Kim Jungwoo, Lee Taeyong/Suh Youngho | Johnny
Comments: 13
Kudos: 26





	1. curiosity kills

**Author's Note:**

> so this is my first attempt at a proper plot and multi chap at that. thanks to the gc who were excited to let this happen. we shot a bunch of ideas out into the air and some of those ideas landed in this fic. 
> 
> thanks to zoe, or turkeysandwich for making sure nothing was out of place!
> 
> tw// animal death but its quick i promise. literally one line.

it always snows here.

that’s what taeyong thinks as the street beneath his feet is coated in a thick layer of white. the place looks pristin, virginal in it’s purity. he stubs a cigarette into the road he was currently waiting in, an ashy blackened circle disrupting the peace. he stares across the street, focus blurry as he follows the criss cross wires till he goes watery eyed. he feels the snow soak into his ratty hoodie, ignores it, knowing he was never going to keep him warm. he hears people shout and someone scream but he ignores it. it’s either a mugging or a murder, not anything new. they’ll just clean it up before the night is over, and it’s not like it’s his business anyway. if there’s one thing he’s learned over the years it’s keep your nose out of where it doesn’t belong.

he shifts in his position near the ground, teeth chattering, fingers bright red from the chill. he has no watch but by the dark sky it’s definitely well into the night. he wasn’t sure why he was out here, really. he’d been asked by his friend doyoung to meet him near his house as he has a favour to ask him. taeyong is slightly nervous he may be breaking his minding his own business rule, but it’s doyoung, he could never say no to him.

he’s probably there for another ten minutes before he hears a soft, “tae,” from further up the street. he blinks back into focus to see two people walking briskly toward him. he recognises one as doyoung, his baggy clothes making his skinny body look even skinnier. beside him stands a small boy. he looks pretty young, younger than taeyong’s seen in a long time. 

he stands up from his crouching position, kicking the cigarette away. “what cradle did you rob this one from doie?”the boy scowls up at him but taeyong couldn’t care less. “he’s a newbie. the guards dropped off a bunch of them today. they’re getting younger, tae. one of them was a child, not older than 13.”

“well it’s natural selection according to them.” god, it’s been two minutes and already he needs another smoke. a child, forced to live here alone. he knows too well what that’s like. he takes the pack from his pocket, ignoring the scrunch of his friends face. “what’s your name, kid?”“fuck you.” the boys spits as taeyong strikes up the lighter. he raises a brow before pocketing the lighter and taking a drag, blowing it straight into the kids face. he sneers and almost jumps for taeyong but doyoung pulls him back. 

the kid struggles in his arms as he says. “jaemin…jaemin, it’s okay, calm down.” he turns to taeyong who’s turned back to facing the wire. “could you not smoke that right now.”

“when you give me something better to do, then i’ll consider it.” 

the younger sighs, his cheeks are sunken in. the white haired boy wonders if he’s been eating the prescribed meals or rationing them off. the good samaritan of this god forsaken place. “listen, they need a place to sleep tonight and i can only fit so many of them in my room. please taeyong just tonight then he’ll be out of your hair.”

the eldest licks his tongue over his teeth, glances from doyoung to the kid, now named jaemin, still scowling but he doesn’t miss the shake in his hands that they all know isn't from the cold. he reminds him of a scared dog, and what do scared dogs do but lash out at what their scared of. he stubs the cigarette, another stain on the flawless snow. “he can stay.”

“thank you.”

“just for one night. after that he’s on his own.” 

“he’s right here, asshole.” jaemin barks. taeyong’s begun walking and the two jog to catch up. their shoes crunch in the snow, taeyongs toes numb from the cold as the wet slush seeps into his socks. as they walk, the fence continues with them. he notices jaamin is skittish, every honk of a car horn, every screech of car tires or shout it’s like he’d already be gone if it weren’t for doyoung’s hold on him. they walk into one of the alleys, taeyong fishing for his keys. his door has fresh spray paint on it again. this time is reads, _‘who is to blame?’_ , as if taeyong has the answer.

taeyong’s living area isn’t exactly top quality, he see’s the frown on the young boys face as soon as they step into his humble abode. it’s dingy, cold and derelict. but it’s a roof over his head, a lot of people don’t get that luxury here. jaemin inspects the place while doyoung takes taeyong to the side. “thank you for doing this. he would’ve frozen to death otherwise.”

taeyong crosses his arms, frowning at his friend. “what are you planning on doing?” 

the younger picks at chipping paint in the damp hallway. “giving them a head start on life here. making sure they know what they have to do to survive here. only thing i can do really.”

“you shouldn’t carry this burden, doyoung, not in a place like this.”

his friend sighs. “well, it’s either this or get myself killed trying to feed the homeless people around here.” he pokes his head in to see jaemin sitting aimlessly on the couch. “i’ll be back in the morning, okay? i promise.”

jaemin nods, taeyong finds it funny how much trust the newbies have in people. doyoung bids them goodbye and he locks the door afterwards. all that can be heard now is the drip, drip, drip from the leaky tap in the bathroom. street light shines in at an angle, obscuring half of taeyong’s face in an orange haze. an awkward silence sits in the air, before the older says. “you can sleep on the couch.”

jaemin nods, getting up and walking to the window. outside, a tabby cat sniffs at a bag of garbage on the path. “what is this place?” the young boy asks.

taeyong nods, he was expecting these questions. “this place doesn’t have a name. they don’t care about it to name it. we call it the cage.”

jaemin frowns, the cat startles at a far away sound and runs. it’s paw prints distinct in the snow. for the first time tonight taeyong sees his age. “the cage? but they told us this place was supposed to be a safe haven.”

taeyong snorts, before laughing mirthlessly. “safe haven? that’s what they’re telling people now, huh?” 

jaemin withered a bit, he continued. “the only reason why you’re here is cuz they don’t want you anywhere else. see that?” he points to the fence, “that’s not to keep unwanted out, it’s to keep us in.”

the younger boys eyes widen, just as the shriek of a cat pierces through the silence. it sprints back into sight, a scrappy dog following it. the dog gnashes at it but keeps its distance. the tabby is back up near the fence, cornered by the dog. there’s a few tense moments before the dog leaps for it, but it’s too late, the cat has slinked away quick enough for the dogs face to meet the fence. there’s but a millisecond before electricity crackles and the dog whimpers high and frantic before running off with what can only be assumed as a charred face. jaemin gasps, jumping a little bit away from the window. taeyong doesn’t even flinch. he stares straight at jaemin.

“this place is called the cage for a reason. nothing comes in, nothing comes out. good luck ever thinking you were ever going to have a shot of getting out of here.”

the cat comes out of its hiding spot cautiously. the fence is still smoking, the cat comes up and sniffs at the smoke. it takes it a minute before it runs away, obviously recognising the danger of messing with it. jaemin stands in horror for a few moments before his eyes catch something else. “what’s that?”what he’s pointing to its a house far in the distance. elevated by concrete pillars, it looms over the city. darkened glass mirrors the snow falling in front of it. white marble separates the glass and juts out into a little balcony. it’s big, it’s tacky and it represents everything the cage isn’t.

“that belongs to the elite. the rich fuckers who thought too highly of themselves and got us into this mess.” the younger doesn’t ask for details, so taeyong doesn’t give them. they both know it doesn’t matter at this point.”whoever lives there makes sure we don’t get into too much trouble. anyone gets too proud or free and they make sure no one else gets the same idea.” 

tears spring to jaemin’s eyes. taeyong takes this as his cue to head to bed. he doesn’t deal well with tears. “they told me i’d see my mom.” 

that halts him in his steps, a pang of sympathy rings in his heart. he lets out a breath. “listen kid, not that it’s any consolation. but in less than a year missing your mom is going to be the least of your worries when you’re fending off the second mugger of the day. you’ll adapt.”

jaemin nods, finally turning away from the window and heading for the couch. “hyung,” he calls out just as taeyong is about to close the door. “why did they put us in here?”

taeyong contemplates telling him. he didn’t want to make the boy spiral, but at the end of the day they are here for one purpose only. “we’re here to die out.” 

and with that he shut his bedroom door, climbed onto his decaying mattress, and went to sleep.

— — —

the morning was just as bleak, but at least the breeze was fresh. 

the rations for the week had been dropped off a few hours before taeyong got up so when he got to the market not much was left. he didn’t mind though, he didn’t need that many things to keep him going. as long as he had enough food, he would be fine. the snow was still heavy and consistent but the wind had stopped so taeyong could walk home not feeling like his fingers were gonna fall off. while he walked he passed two men exchanging rations beside a dumpster fire. he ignored it, he just wanted to go back to bed. doyoung had collected jaemin earlier with a promise of owing him a favour. it was easily dismissed because taeyong knew doyoung, he would risk his life for anyone and anything all for a favour. he did not want to put his friend in that position. 

he passed the crossroads in the middle of town, it housed the statue of what once was some famous person, but was split in half from the waist up, leaving only someones legs. the plaque that once read, _Yoo Kihyuck, founder of the City of the Red Sun_ was spray painted over with the words, _MURDERER_. its been in this state of disarray ever since taeyong arrived here and it makes him curious, he’s always wanted to put a face to the name. 

he opens his bag of goodies and begins counting the amount of eggs he acquired, but he halts just before he passes an alleyway. he can hear pained groaning. usually, he ignores this stuff. not his business, not his problem, but something catches his eye. 

it’s a gold cufflink. 

he picks it up, the metal glinting in the sun. it looks brand new, expensive and it’s something that taeyong has never seen before in his life. no one around here even has an fifth of what he thinks this probably costs, so he knows its strange because who owns this? 

more groaning. taeyong turns his full attention to the alleyway beside him. further in there’s the second cufflink and a streak of blood. he knows he shouldn’t, but curiosity gets the best of him this time and he creeps his way towards the cufflink. the blood streaks continue, followed by more jewellery. an expensive watch, a bracelet, a velvet suit jacket. taeyong is more perplexed with the accessories than he is about the blood, but they seem to go hand in hand so he continues. the groaning gets closer, but now he can hear panting accompanying it. 

“hello?” the voice suddenly speaks up. taeyong’s closer now and can see the body on the ground. they’re half dressed in a suit. whatever is missing off of their body has been deposited on the floor. under them is a pool of blood. blotting the snow like an ink stain. taeyong has never seen anything like what the person is wearing. 

“who are you?” taeyong finds himself asking. 

the person, lifts their head up and shows their features. it’s a man, and he’s stunningly gorgeous. “k-kim jongin.” the man stammers, his lips are blue from the cold. the white blonde wonders how long he’s been out here. the blood looks fresh though. 

taeyong takes a step further. “are you from the elite?” he nods and of course he is, he has to be. no one who’s not elite can get away with what he’s wearing. “why are you here?”

“it’s so cold.” jongin removes his hand from his wound, and reveals the severity of it. maybe he knows it’s futile to try and put pressure on it. the cold is killing him too. taeyong is close enough now that he kneels in the snow. the hand that was on the elites wound comes to wrap around taeyongs wrist and drag him closer. he lets out another pained noise. 

“hey, get off!” taeyong snaps, tugging at his hand. jongin just grabs his shirt instead, soaking it in blood. 

“you lot live in filth. i guess this was my punishment, dying in squalor.”

punishment? what was this guy on about. taeyong is about to ask him what he means before jongin’s head slumps in the snow, succumbed to his wounds. taeyong stares at him a moment, bewildered before he realises that the hand in his shirt has slumped, smearing the mess down. the sight of blood on his shirt snaps him right back to reality. an elite, dead on the ground and a caged, covered in blood. surely someone is looking for this guy and taeyong does not want to be here when they find him. curse him for being too curious.

because you know what they say about curiosity. 

taeyong hasn’t even properly stood up before red and green lights shine in front of him. sirens blare and he can feel the panic creeping up on him. two men in uniforms he doesn’t recognise leave the car, guns drawn. “down on the ground, now!”“no wait, wait, you’ve got it wrong.”

“drop the bag.” taeyong does immediately, raising his arms. he’s backed up against the wall of a building, chest rising and falling rapidly. before he can plead his case however, the butt of one of the guards guns comes into contact with his temple, his world going black. 

the two guards don’t lower their weapon until he is a pile of limbs on the snow, one of them puts his hands behind his back and cuffs him while the other checks the body of kim jongin. 

“sir, we found him.”

the tabby cat from the night before waltzes up to the body, purring upon arrival. the guard takes one look at it and scoffs. raises his gun…

and shoots the cat straight between the eyes.


	2. freeze

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> putting two and two together sent a shiver down his spine that was colder than any wind chill could make him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> omg thanks for much for the comments last chapter guys! i'm glad you're excited. comments are still always appreciated so pls do so. it feeds my excitement to continue. sorry this is so short. they will get longer, i promise!!

seo youngho wakes up at 8 am every morning to do the same routine. breakfast at 8:10, jog at 8:20 and shower at 8:30. he gets dressed, makes his cup of coffee and is out the door and on his way to the train to take him to work. you’d think his morning routine would bore him, considering he’s been doing it for the past four years, but when you work in the job he does, this is the only part of his day that is consistent. 

at the train station, his i.d is checked and his retina is scanned. everyday the test comes back the same. under his name is a tag that says elite. he’s let through the turnstile, told to enjoy his day and is let on the train. the train staff ask does he want the latest news data chip, so he can be updated on what’s been going on in the world. he accepts, taking the chip and activating it on his table. a hologram screen appears, asking him which section of the news he wishes to choose first. he chooses politics and goes from there. 

it takes a half hour to get to the police sector so johnny loses himself in the chip. it offers some entertainment videos and well he can’t say no to dog videos so he watches them to pass the time. he deposits the chip when he leaves as it’s useless now that the information’s burned out. he exits the train station, fishing out his detective badge for when he is entering the police sector. 

the police sector is one of the biggest sectors of red sun. grey in its colour palette, clean and sterile. people in uniform come in and out of the building. some on their own, some in pairs and some transporting prisoners away from the main building. johnny dodges once such instance where some woman was screaming bloody murder about how she was innocent. some of the newer guards look a bit shaken by this outburst but johnny is so desensitised to it at this point he just enters the building. his badge is checked, he walks through the metal detector and then he proceeds to his office. 

“ah, detective suh.” one of his co workers greets him once he’s through the doors. he clocks in when the clock hits 9:20, ten minutes early to work. this gives him time to get settled and hopefully get another cup of coffee. 

“detective moon, how are you?” johnny engages in the small talk as they walk to the small kitchen. “coffee?” 

“none for me, thanks.” johnny reaches for a mug and pours himself the drink. “the boss looks a bit anxious.”

“captain lee is always anxious.” he scoffs, taking his glass mug and walking back to his desk. “i’m pretty sure the board is on his ass about everything nowadays.”

“can you blame him? he’s got the entirety of red sun to look after. all they have to do is yell at him when they think he’s done something wrong.”

johnny takes a sip, the acrid coffee taste hitting his tongue. it was true. it wasn’t like the old times, where every sector was given a police station with it’s own force and captain. now, one building takes care of the entire city, with one man overseeing it all. captain lee sooman was tasked with upholding this city’s laws and keeping track of all the other sectors. the board were all the elites who held the power though, they told him what the upmost importance was. where the police were supposed to divert their attention to. usually it was very small things, but it’s not like johnny can complain. it’s either this or being known as the dregs of society for the rest of his days.

johnny was given this role to continue human life, he wasn’t going to mess with that. even if he doesn’t agree with everything that they do.

taeil leaves to sit at his desk, and johnny is ready to look over his cases and start calling his leads when suddenly the bell for morning meeting sounds out. he sighs, collecting all his things necessary for the debrief and makes his way to the conference room.

“detective suh,” someone says, stopping him. its captain lee, he immediately bows. “you won’t be needed in that meeting.” he raises a brow but before he can question it the captain continues. “could you come into my office, please?”

the younger detective swallows hard, following behind the captain. he turns his head to see taeil giving him a confused look before he goes through the automatic doors. the captain tells him to sit, he does so. “drop your current cases.”

“i’m sorry?” johnny blinks. he couldn’t drop his cases, he was just about to crack some of them. “sir, i assure you i’m on schedule, my quota will be hit.”he was dismissed with a wave. “you’re dropping your cases because we gotten one that needs every ounce of your attention.”

johnny perked up at this. “what’s happened?”

“a murder in the outskirts. someone very influential and something very top secret. if you take this case you need to swear that nothing from this case gets out, is that clear?”he nods. “yes, completely.”

“we can’t waste time so a helicopter is coming to pick you up to bring you to the crime scene. they’ve already a man in custody but they need some hard evidence to nail him.”

“do i get anymore info before i go?”

“not from me. a briefing package will be given to you on the helicopter so you’ll be able to catch up to speed with the officers there. now,” the captain says, standing up. “anymore questions?”

“just one sir.” johnny got up, falling into step with his superior. “not that i’m not flattered, but why was i picked for this job?”

there was a few seconds of silence as the captain pressed the button for the elevator. “they requested you. apparently you have some allies in the outskirts.”

that threw johnny for a loop. who was in the outskirts that he would know? as the elevator went up he scoured his mind looking for someone who he knows stationed out there, but he really couldn’t think of anyone. maybe once he got there he’d be able to piece together why he was chosen for this but right now, he’s running a bit on autopilot so he just continues to follow captain lee.

he hears the helicopter before the elevator doors open. outside the wind whipped around them as the chopper’s wings spun. a man in all black was waiting for them. he bows to the captain and shakes johnny’s hand. “is everything in order?” captain lee asks, the man nods. 

“ready whenever you are, sir.” they both turn to johnny now, who nods and is then handed a padded jacket and gloves. 

“you’re gonna wanna want these. it’s cold up there.”

— — —

the man was wrong, it wasn’t just cold in the outskirts, it was absolutely freezing. 

not much was known about the outskirts in red sun. just that is was somewhere were you didn’t want to end up. it housed the dregs, the delinquents. people who were of no use to society. honestly, it’s a wonder the police sector doesn’t get more calls about crimes occurring there. maybe there were, johnny thinks, and maybe they were as top secret as this seems to be. 

this case was simple. a guy was found murdered in an alley. seemingly one stab wound to the stomach and bled out. no one was at the scene except for one man who they arrested and are now questioning. johnny would question the need for his involvement if he hadn’t seen the name of the victim. 

kim jongin. the son in law to the director of the board. 

seeing the name and then putting two and two together sent a shiver down his spine that was colder than any wind chill could make him. this name had a lot of weight to it, and that weight was just thrown onto johnny’s with the blind trust that he was going to be able to solve this cleanly. someone doesn’t murder someone so highly elite without there being something bigger to it. and he can understand captain lee’s need to keep everything top secret. if it gets out some random boy murdered someone of high value, who knows who could sneak through the cracks and kill others. he took a breath just as a massive marble house came into view. this was going to be no pressure at all. 

the helicopter landed to an audience. three men and one woman stand at the barrier, waiting for the bird to come to a complete stop. as the whirring calmed down, the man escorting johnny opened the doors and let him out. he could now see the men properly. an older woman with two younger men. the woman steps forward, letting johnny bow, her guard not too far behind.

“detective suh, it’s a pleasure to meet you. my name is jung jaehee. shall we take this inside were it’s warm?”

“yes, i would very much appreciate that.” he says, teeth chattering. 

jaehee nods, signalling for everyone to retreat into the house. johnny follows suit, but not before something catches his attention in the corner of his eye.

far down the mountain sits a very tall, very menacing fence. behind that fence stand seven boys watching their every move.

— — —

in the warmth of the house, one of the men from his arrival steps forward. “i didn’t get to introduce myself earlier when we were all freezing to death but i’m jung jaehyun,”

johnny bows and jaehyun returns it. “hello, thank you for having me.”

“we should be thanking you. you know, my son was the one who recommended you.” jaehee pipes in as they settle in the large office space. grand and varnished so expertly johnny can see every little detail of his reflection. he turns to jaehyun who shrugs. 

“we met at a gala last fall. you and your partner were questioning the bar staff about a different case.” johnny racks his brain as jaehyun explains and has a vague recollection of giving his card to the staff when he left. jaehyun must’ve obviously snagged one.

“i’m so honoured that you would even think of me for this case. i read the files on the way here.” 

the man beside jaehyun links arms with the other man. “and? have you got any leads yet? do you have an assistant to help you out?”

jaehyun chuckles beside him. “this is jungwoo, my husband.”

there’s a clipped moment of silence where jaehee sits there and then she laughs. “you’ll have to excuse jungwoo, he does enjoy a good mystery novel.”

jungwoo smiles up at him innocently, but johnny knows intelligent eyes when he sees them. jaehyun smiles down at his husband, planting a kiss on the crown of his head. johnny turns his attention back to jaehee. “i assume you read the details of the case.”

“yes,” he says, sitting when the older woman gestured to the chair in front of her.

“you can understand how delicate this situation is.”

“completely.”

“the only people who know about this are the people in this room. any details you uncover comes straight to me. i’m to be kept updated at all times. you can use any resources we have.” jaehee’s eyes had a hard edge to them. johnny found himself nodding. she smiled immediately after. “good. now, do you have any questions before we start the investigation?”

he nods, a few did crop up when he read the case file. “what was someone from the boards families doing in the outskirts?”

“a question we have ourselves.” jaehyun says. “we had no notice that anyone from the main city would be coming.”

“his outfit suggests he was somewhere fancy. i’d like to know of any gatherings on the night of the murder. perhaps someone there knows what happened.”

jaehee nods, writing something down. “we’ll have someone look into that.”

for this one johnny stands up, walking towards the ceiling to floor windows. “lastly, that city down there. i’ll need to go down there to survey the crime scene.”

“yes, this was established in the debrief.”

“what can i expect there? it doesn’t look to be in the best shape.”

jungwoo smirks in his seat, meanwhile jaehee’s smile disappears. she stands up, her heels clicking loudly as she walks to meet him. “you can expect people who contribute nothing to humanity.” johnny’s brows furrow a bit. “they were sent here to live their lives outside of society.”

“and you live here because?”

“someone has to keep the peace. jongin’s death may have gone unnoticed had we not been here.” 

“guess you could call my mother the mayor, of sorts.” jaehyun says, but he’s not looking at either of them, he’s glancing over to jungwoo who giggles. 

jaehee continues as if nothing was said. “this must be solved as quickly as possible. the boy isn’t talking, but i’m sure you can get through to him.”

“speaking of, this boy. do we know anything about him?”“nothing more than what we gave you in the case files. he’s not talking.”

“can i see him?”

jaehee clicks her fingers and the guards move out. “we’ll take you to him immediately.”

she leaves, leaving just johnny, jaehyun and jungwoo in the room. jungwoo stands up, walking over to his husband. “detective.” he says, bringing johnny’s attention away from the window. 

“yes, sorry?”

“you seem more confused then when you came in.”

“i just…there was this group of boys looking out when i came here. they looked too young to be considered worthless.”

jaehyun scoffed. “dont be fooled, detective.” 

again, that shiver ran through his body when he said the next few words. 

“sometimes the smallest vermin bite the strongest.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> unedited and uploaded when slightly tipsy so lol 
> 
> twitter: @taeyongielove come say hi!

**Author's Note:**

> not edited we die like men
> 
> hit me up on twitter if you want: @taeyongielove
> 
> pls give me validation i beg you


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